2010

Deseret News

A Thousand Years of (Brough)

Family History in 37 Minutes

Free worldwide video documentary of family history now on-line

On November 24, 2009, the Richard Brough Family Organization (one of the largest and oldest ancestral family organizations in the world) freely released worldwide a 37-minute high-quality video documentary entitled "A Thousand Years of Family History"--which details the Brough ancestry of Staffordshire, England and their descendants in Europe, America and Australia. (A second edition of this video was released in May 2010.)

In several ways, this video is a "first" of its kind: It describes nearly a thousand years of history related to a well-known family surname in England--without dwelling on royalty or celebrities. Also, the documentary uses over two dozen narrators and commentators, along with historical photographs, artifacts, and computer graphics, to succinctly tell the story of the Broughs of Staffordshire, England and their descendants--who eventually embraced different religions and spread across several continents. In addition, the video describes how genealogical research and recent DNA tests have been used to clarify family relationships and better understand family traditions.

This video is family-friendly and faith-promoting, and is a good example of what other ancestral organizations around the world can do to visually show and explain their heritage to family members and relatives. The video can be freely viewed on YouTube: